Judges' letter: Justice Yahya Afridi recuses from suo moto case
Pakistan
"High Courts are independent courts under the Constitution. Article 184/3 should not be invoked"
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Justice Yahya Afridi of the Supreme Court has recused himself from the suo moto case of the letter written by six Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges citing interference in judicial matters by intelligence agencies.
Justice Afridi, who was a member of the seven-judge bench hearing the case, attached a note with the written order issued by the apex court for the first hearing of the case.
He noted in his letter that the issue raised by the judges should be viewed in accordance with the Supreme Judicial Council's code of conduct.
"High Courts are independent courts under the Constitution. Article 184/3 should not be invoked on independence of high courts," he wrote.
The seven-member bench that will hear suo moto case is headed by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and comprised Justice Mansoor Ali Shah, Justice Yahya Afridi, Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhel, Justice Athar Minallah, Justice Musarrat Hilali and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan.
During the first hearing on the letter on April 3, the chief justice had said the Supreme Court would not tolerate interference in judicial affairs and was taking the letter by Islamabad High Court judges “very seriously”.
Justice Yahya, in his note, maintained that the suo moto was taken in "good faith", however, it may harm the independence of high courts and their chief justices.
THE ORDER
The bench, in the written order of the hearing, issued notices to the Attorney General for Pakistan Mansoor Usman Awan, Pakistan Bar Council and the SC Bar seeking suggestions regarding the judiciary's response on the matter as an institution.
The order read that CJP Isa and senior puisne judge Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif after a full court meeting and consultation with high court judges.
The order also mentioned that the law minister, as per the AGP, met Justice (retd) Tasadduq Jilani. The former chief justice was provided with the proposed terms of reference (TORs) of the inquiry commission.
Only the secretary of the concerned department can be summoned through a judicial order, the order read, adding that it was stated during the hearing that the prime minister and federal ministers have an exemption under Article 248.
According to Article 248, the premier and law minister cannot be summoned.
The order also included the AGP's arguments from the hearing, according to which the judges' letter did not mention any incident during the tenure of CJP Isa.
SUO MOTO
The apex court on April 1 took suo moto notice of the matter after around 300 lawyers, belonging to various bar associations across the country, signed a petition demanding CJP Isa to exercise the apex court's suo moto jurisdiction under Article 184(3) of the Constitution on the letter.
The lawyers also rejected the formation of a single-member inquiry commission comprising former chief justice of Pakistan to probe the allegations.
The chief justice reportedly referred the matter to a judges’ committee, comprising himself and three senior most judges of the apex court under the Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Act 2023, for deliberation and constitution of a bench for hearing the matter.
The committee later decided to exercise suo moto jurisdiction under Article 184(3) of the Constitution and fix the matter for hearing on April 3.
